Coventry and Warwickshire 2012 Partnership and Imagineer give Godiva £500,000 make over

Added: (Fri Oct 30 2009)

Pressbox (Press Release) - A ten-metre tall ‘living’ Lady Godiva will be created in Coventry city centre after a local production company was selected for a national Olympic art project and awarded a £500,000 grant.
Imagineer Productions has beaten off competition from thousands of artists to become one of just 12 organisations selected nationally for Arts Council England’s Artists Taking the Lead project.
Artists Taking the Lead is being developed by Arts Council England in partnership with the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (LOCOG) and the arts councils of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Twelve commissions will be created by artists across the nation, as part of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad.
The Puma Way-based company, which has been supported by the Coventry and Warwickshire Partnership for the 2012 Games and Roger Medwell, managing director of NP Aerospace, will create a walking, breathing Lady Godiva which comes to life through the pedal power of 50 cyclists.
Jane Hytch, from Imagineer Productions, said: “We are delighted to have been selected to take part in this unique project especially when we consider the quality of the other candidates’ proposals.
“This is a hugely challenging project both artistically and in terms of engineering and it is a great feeling to be part of something so exciting and innovative.
“This project will create a unique piece of permanent public art that people in Coventry and Warwickshire can be truly proud of.
“We look forward to working closely with all our partners and to making the project a major success.”
The creation, which will become a piece of permanent public art, will represent the region’s proud cultural and engineering past as well as its exciting future.
More than 2,000 dancers, actors, aerialists, musicians, pyrotechnic experts and carnival performers will join the structure in a processional performance before it walks to London to play a part in the 2012.
Tom Clift, Coventry and Warwickshire partnership manager for the 2012 Games, said: “We are delighted that Imagineer Productions has been selected to be part of the national Artists Taking the Lead Cultural Olympiad signature project.
“Their inclusion further demonstrates our commitment to engaging in the London 2012 Games and ensuring that Coventry and Warwickshire plays a key role in the celebrations surrounding London 2012.
“This challenging and imaginative project adds huge value to the work of our partnership and we are thrilled with Imagineer’s success.”

ENDS

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